Any handicaped pianist??

[casparma]

Is there any famous handicaped pianist??

[chopiabin]

Didn't Ravel write a left hand only concerto for a handicapped pianist?

[pseudopianist]

David Helfgott

[Jacey1973]

Didn't Ravel write a left hand only concerto for a handicapped pianist?

Yeah, wasnt it a friend of his who was a pianist before WW1 then lost his right arm during battle?

[Souza]

João Carlos Martins, brazilian pianist, recorded complete Bach work, had suffered severe injure in both arms, chronic tendonitis, carpal syndrome, surgical complaints, his arms/hands are completely deformed.  Recently he gave his  farewell recital playing Bach Prelude n 1 WTC, and the notes of National Brazilian Anthem. At the same recital he announced his new career as a conductor, and ends the recital facing the orchestra.
An impressionable and full of feeling moment.

https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/103-5379837-1128618

{}s Pedro

[bernhard]

Yeah, wasnt it a friend of his who was a pianist before WW1 then lost his right arm during battle?

His name was Paul Wittgenstein (brother of the famous philosopher). He lost his right arm on the WWI.

There is quite a number of blind pianists as well (and Beethoven was deaf).

Byron Janis (and apparently Ashkenazy) stopped playing because of arthritis.

Dudely Moore had multiple sclerosis (I think)

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[bernhard]

João Carlos Martins, brazilian pianist, recorded complete Bach work, had suffered severe injure in both arms, chronic tendonitis, carpal syndrome, surgical complaints, his arms/hands are completely deformed.  Recently he gave his  farewell recital playing Bach Prelude n 1 WTC, and the notes of National Brazilian Anthem. At the same recital he announced his new career as a conductor, and ends the recital facing the orchestra.
An impressionable and full of feeling moment.

https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/103-5379837-1128618

{}s Pedro

What exactly caused it ? I have read a number of contradictory accounts (including one that his problems started after he was hit by the ball in a football game).

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[Souza]

What exactly caused it ? I have read a number of contradictory accounts (including one that his problems started after he was hit by the ball in a football game).

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

Dear Bernhard



In a brazilian interview at Tv, he had described various diagnosis:
arthrosis, carpal syndrome, tendinitis, unfortunates results of a surgery after the
falling playing soccer, among additional  muscle-skeletal disorders.

I can't imagine the (real) cause(s) of his actual arms/hands atrophies.
IMO it is an ensemble of intercross causes, with his individual or peculiar
aspects: personal or individual predisposition, idiosyncracy/idiosyncrasy and
personal susceptibility, plus an extravagant or excessive technic,
ultimately a connected overlapped injuries before and after the downfall
playing soccer when a little stone locates in his forearm.

Some time ago I have seen his fortissimos at  a piano-concerto
performance... I became dumbfounded and stunned, how someone could play
that way without an severe injury as consequence.  Of course I could be
wrong, because that was my impression at Tv show...I have never seen a
living performance, so I am afraid it could  be an untrustworthy and unjust comment.


Just wondering... how is it possible  a huge pianist practicing  "against
himself"  at the point of injure  as consequence?

It's just a conjecture, I can't affirm that it was the major problem
occurred to João Carlos Martins.  I even don't know if his technics had any
relation to the damage.  These are just my impressions and conjectures, a mystery.

I would like to know if someone had seen his performances at Carnegie Hall,
or in  another location.

The great misfortune is that the real cause was not stated and
healed at the critical moment, when the situation could be reverted. Who
knows this mournful outcome,  that stops his career as  pianist,  could be
prevented.

The "turning-point-rescue",  with some heal approach or reorientation, must be investigated to prevent such  corollary.


Some photos of his farewell:
https://musica.terra.com.br/interna/0,,OI213806-EI1267,00.html

João Carlos as conductor:
https://musica.terra.com.br/interna/0,,OI289080-EI1267,00.html


Discography:
https://www.classical.net/~music/recs/reviews/l/lab07033a.html
https://www.phillyfests.com/pff/templates/film_details.cfm?id=2929
https://www.laborrecords.com/joao/joaocarlos.htm#joao_book

Movie Documentary:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0417951/
https://www.chicagodocfestival.org/martins_passion.htm

Critical notes
https://www.classicstoday.com/review.asp?ReviewNum=2628


Bernhard, there is a lovely poem at,  https://www.portalcen.org/revistas/carlos/004.htm
Unfortunately I can't translate as I wished. The tittle: Minhas Mãos (My Hands) dedicated to João Carlos...I offer you as acknowledgment to your teaching...
.

Minhas mãos - Nadir A D'Onofrio (author)

Dedicada ao grande pianista e hoje maestro! João Carlos Martins Um dos maiores interpretes das músicas de Johann Sebasthian Bach

Mãos instrumento fantástico
que pegam, sentem, acariciam
Essas mãos que aprendi a sentir só pelo tato,
as formas, suavidade, aspereza.
Mãos que trabalharam, acariciaram,
que deram-me o prazer de dedilhar meu piano
onde através das notas musicais, meu espirito se elevava.

Outras vezes no meu deleite, era como se
teu corpo eu sentisse ou acariciava!
A música essa minha grande paixão,
força energética que impulsionou toda minha existência.
Que me fez viver, sorrir ou até muitas vezes chorar
e que através de minhas mãos,
eu pude centenas de vezes executar!
Hoje como que uma prova imposta pelo meu destino
sou quase que obrigado a abandonar...

Más quem sonha vive e dentro do mais recôndito lugar,
no fundo do meu ser, busco essa força maior!
Propulsora pela movimentação desse imenso universo,
essa energia Divina, me dá coragem, alegria
e dessa forma vou minha lacuna preencher.

Meus dedos já impossibilitados para um piano tocar,
não me impediram de minha música executar!
Regendo essa orquestra poderei então,
extravasar essa minha grande paixão!!!


Best regards
Pedro

[Souza]

His name was Paul Wittgenstein (brother of the famous philosopher). He lost his right arm on the WWI.

There is quite a number of blind pianists as well (and Beethoven was deaf).

Byron Janis (and apparently Ashkenazy) stopped playing because of arthritis.

Dudely Moore had multiple sclerosis (I think)

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

Fascinating outlook about the chronic diseases and its limitations...our
human limitations.

Illness also could be defined as "lost of liberty", involves limitation and suffering, human affairs...

Officially the cause of Chopin's death was tuberculosis, although there is
some speculation that he may have had another disease such as cystic
fibrosis.


There are manifold links at Pubmed about chronic disorders in  musicians:


https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Display&dopt=pubmed_pubmed&from_uid=3320707

We could remember some chronic diseases : depression (Rachmaninoff?), Asperger's syndrome (Glen Gould?), fibrosis cystic (Chopin?), adiction (...?), cirrhosis (Brahms?),
panic attacks(...?), stage fright (Godovsky?), restless legs syndrome (some
jazz and classical pianists?),  diabetes (...?), hypertension/stroke (Audun Ravnan?),
morbid obesity (some great jazz pianists?), syphilis (Schubert?), chronic
glomerular nephritis and chronic renal failure (Mozart?), episodic
headaches/nausea and dizziness (Prokofiev)


Was Frederic Chopin's illness actually cystic fibrosis?
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=3320707&dopt=Abstract


Edvard Grieg's health and his physicians
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=8278965&query_hl=2


Schumann -Focal dystonia
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Display&dopt=pubmed_pubmed&from_uid=3320707


I can't forget ...
Hyperhydrosis (Berezovsky at La RoqueD'Anthéron?)
OCDisorders (almost every pianist...)
Chronic flatulence (not me!) 

{}s Pedro

[leahcim]

Asperger's syndrome (Glen Gould?)

Yeah, speaking as a programmer, it seems almost mandatory these days to give yourself this "condition" - around the time that a book about Richard Stallman appeared that, pretty much in the way Gould has apparantly been "diagnosed", decided that he was, IIRC by asking his mother. Then, suddenly it's a "geek" illness - a passport into a career - if you want to be good at computing or maths, then you'd better start rocking in your chair and eating carpet tiles or whatever it is they do

Sheesh, can't someone just be an obnoxious git or stubborn or good at maths / computing? Nope, they have to have a condition that explains it.

A friend of mine who is a doctor says the tests for autism and the related stuff - especially in the milder cases, are just widening the net - there's probably nobody, except that woman in your office who waltzes around like she's on cocaine smiling at everyone who doesn't have Aspergers

[casparma]

but I wonder how can a pianist with only one arm playing as good as with two arms....

[Souza]

but I wonder how can a pianist with only one arm playing as good as with two arms....

Miriam Esteves 47year-old brazilian pianist, was born without her left forearm. She is a professional pianist...

https://www.muitoespecial.com.br/pessoas_especiais.asp?conteudo=269

https://www.sentidos.com.br/canais/materia.asp?codpag=5968&codtipo=1&subcat=54&canal=talento

This miracle invites to meditate this Zen Koan:

* * *

LITTLE Toyo was only twelve years old. But since he was a pupil at
the Kennin temple, he wanted to be given a koan to ponder, just
like the more advanced students. So one evening, at the proper
time, he went to the room of Mokurai, the master, struck the gong
softly to announce his presence, bowed, and sat before the master
in respectful silence.

Finally the master said: "Toyo, show me the sound of two hands
clapping."

Toyo clapped his hands.

"Good," said the master. "Now show me the sound of one hand
clapping."

Toyo was silent. Finally he bowed and left to consider this
problem.

The next night he returned, and struck the gong with one palm.
"That is not right," said the master. The next night Toyo returned
and played geisha music with one hand. "That is not right," said
the master. The next night Toyo returned, and imitated the
dripping of water.

"That is not right," said the master. The next night Toyo
returned, and imitated the cricket scraping his leg. "That is
still not right," said the master.

For ten nights Toyo tried new sounds. At last he stopped coming to
the master. For a year he thought of every sound, and discarded
them all, until fnally he reached enlightenment.

He returned respectfully to the master. Without striking the gong,
he sat down and bowed. "I have heard sound without sound," he
said.

* * *
{}s Pedro

[Bouter Boogie]

Didn't Ravel write a left hand only concerto for a handicapped pianist?

That's right. He completed that piano concerto in 1930 for the pianist Paul Wittgenstein who had lost his right arm in the war.

- BB

[bernhard]

Dear Bernhard



In a brazilian interview at Tv, he had described various diagnosis:
arthrosis, carpal syndrome, tendinitis, unfortunates results of a surgery after the
falling playing soccer, among additional  muscle-skeletal disorders.

I can't imagine the (real) cause(s) of his actual arms/hands atrophies.
IMO it is an ensemble of intercross causes, with his individual or peculiar
aspects: personal or individual predisposition, idiosyncracy/idiosyncrasy and
personal susceptibility, plus an extravagant or excessive technic,
ultimately a connected overlapped injuries before and after the downfall
playing soccer when a little stone locates in his forearm.

Some time ago I have seen his fortissimos at  a piano-concerto
performance... I became dumbfounded and stunned, how someone could play
that way without an severe injury as consequence.  Of course I could be
wrong, because that was my impression at Tv show...I have never seen a
living performance, so I am afraid it could  be an untrustworthy and unjust comment.


Just wondering... how is it possible  a huge pianist practicing  "against
himself"  at the point of injure  as consequence?

It's just a conjecture, I can't affirm that it was the major problem
occurred to João Carlos Martins.  I even don't know if his technics had any
relation to the damage.  These are just my impressions and conjectures, a mystery.

I would like to know if someone had seen his performances at Carnegie Hall,
or in  another location.

The great misfortune is that the real cause was not stated and
healed at the critical moment, when the situation could be reverted. Who
knows this mournful outcome,  that stops his career as  pianist,  could be
prevented.

The "turning-point-rescue",  with some heal approach or reorientation, must be investigated to prevent such  corollary.


Some photos of his farewell:
https://musica.terra.com.br/interna/0,,OI213806-EI1267,00.html

João Carlos as conductor:
https://musica.terra.com.br/interna/0,,OI289080-EI1267,00.html


Discography:
https://www.classical.net/~music/recs/reviews/l/lab07033a.html
https://www.phillyfests.com/pff/templates/film_details.cfm?id=2929
https://www.laborrecords.com/joao/joaocarlos.htm#joao_book

Movie Documentary:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0417951/
https://www.chicagodocfestival.org/martins_passion.htm

Critical notes
https://www.classicstoday.com/review.asp?ReviewNum=2628


Bernhard, there is a lovely poem at,  https://www.portalcen.org/revistas/carlos/004.htm
Unfortunately I can't translate as I wished. The tittle: Minhas Mãos (My Hands) dedicated to João Carlos...I offer you as acknowledgment to your teaching...
.

Minhas mãos - Nadir A D'Onofrio (author)

Dedicada ao grande pianista e hoje maestro! João Carlos Martins Um dos maiores interpretes das músicas de Johann Sebasthian Bach

Mãos instrumento fantástico
que pegam, sentem, acariciam
Essas mãos que aprendi a sentir só pelo tato,
as formas, suavidade, aspereza.
Mãos que trabalharam, acariciaram,
que deram-me o prazer de dedilhar meu piano
onde através das notas musicais, meu espirito se elevava.

Outras vezes no meu deleite, era como se
teu corpo eu sentisse ou acariciava!
A música essa minha grande paixão,
força energética que impulsionou toda minha existência.
Que me fez viver, sorrir ou até muitas vezes chorar
e que através de minhas mãos,
eu pude centenas de vezes executar!
Hoje como que uma prova imposta pelo meu destino
sou quase que obrigado a abandonar...

Más quem sonha vive e dentro do mais recôndito lugar,
no fundo do meu ser, busco essa força maior!
Propulsora pela movimentação desse imenso universo,
essa energia Divina, me dá coragem, alegria
e dessa forma vou minha lacuna preencher.

Meus dedos já impossibilitados para um piano tocar,
não me impediram de minha música executar!
Regendo essa orquestra poderei então,
extravasar essa minha grande paixão!!!


Best regards
Pedro

I have just come across this interesting interview with Martins (sorry it is in Portuguese - If I have time later I will translate some bits).

https://www.noolhar.com/opovo/vidaearte/381228.html


He mentions that at 25 while palying football, "a stone penetrated his arm" (I am not sure quite what to make of it). And then he manetions that years later he was mugged in Bulgaria and hit on the head.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[Souza]

I have just come across this interesting interview with Martins (sorry it is in Portuguese - If I have time later I will translate some bits).

https://www.noolhar.com/opovo/vidaearte/381228.html


He mentions that at 25 while palying football, "a stone penetrated his arm" (I am not sure quite what to make of it). And then he manetions that years later he was mugged in Bulgaria and hit on the head.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

Bernhard

Two weeks ago  João Carlos Martins was at a brazilian talk show and explains exactly this...when he was 25, in a fall playing football, a little stone entered his forearm. Some surgery was done, but he obstinately continued playing recitals, playing with left hand. Years later, he suffered a cranial trauma in Sofia, Europe, when a robber had attacked him.

At the talk show he played Reverie - Schumann, hands together,  and talked about his new biography/movie, and new recordings of all Brandenburg concertos as regent.

{}s Pedro

[Souza]

Good links to add this thread about João Carlos Martins:

https://www.teatroalfa.com.br/modulos/programacao/detalhes.asp?codigo=439&codigoAnt=431&codigoPos=435

https://jbonline.terra.com.br/jb/papel/cadernob/2001/08/18/jorcab20010818008.html

https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/ilustrada/ult90u52930.shtml



Another link about  Mary Grace Gellekanao, an inspiration to all:

https://www.superhands.us/pages/marygrace.html

{}s Pedro